A number of systems have previously been provided for decorating walls with decorative panels, such as in wainscoting applications. In a conventional installation of such decorative panels, a skilled carpenter is typically required to expend significant time and effort in laying out the panel configuration for the specific wall surface to be covered and in installing the panels. Moreover, such efforts typically require the use of a number of different power tools and air-driven fasteners to attach the panels to the wall surface. After the installer has finished, a skilled painter is then typically required to fill, sand, and prepare all of the decorative surfaces before applying paints, stains, or varnishes of at least two coats, sanding between each coat, and cleanup after the painting or staining process is completed.
This process can take several days to complete, and with the additional time required to schedule the various contractors needed to complete the job, a homeowner may face a significant length of time in order to accomplish a relatively minor and cosmetic home improvement. Moreover, the sanding, painting, and drying time associated with such task creates mess and unpleasant odors that the homeowner must deal with during the installation process.
It would therefore be advantageous to provide a decorative wall system that could be easily installed without the need for specialist contractors or with specialized tools, and that minimized the mess and other inconveniences associated with traditional wall system installation projects. It would also be advantageous to provide such a decorative wall system that includes a mounting system that does not require penetrating fasteners, such as nails, screws, or the like, that typically remain visible after installation (thus requiring careful finishing of the exterior surface after installation).
Moreover, use of such prior known decorative panel systems typically results in a new, permanently modified appearance for the wall. Should the homeowner thereafter wish to further modify the appearance of the wall, it will typically require a minimum of removing the installed panels, and possibly refinishing or even rebuilding portions of the underlying wall surface. It would therefore also be advantageous to provide a decorative wall system that would allow easy modification of the panel system to incorporate various alternate appearances in order to vary the aesthetic appeal as the homeowner might desire.
Still further, if the panel system is to be installed on a wall having electrical outlets, cable television outlets, data ports, speaker jacks, or other electrical, data, and/or communications ports, incorporation of prior known decorative panel systems has typically required careful planning and placement of components, and at times rerouting of such electrical, data, and/or communications ports, in order to properly align such connection hardware with appropriate portions of the panel system. It would therefore also be advantageous to provide a decorative wall panel system that could allow placement of components of the decorative wall panel system and incorporate required peripheral electronic devices, such as electrical, data, and/or communications ports, without requiring modification, rerouting, or rewiring of existing electrical, data, and/or communications ports in the wall on which the panel system is to be installed.